This invention relates to biometric acquisition, identification, fraud detection, and security systems and methods, more particularly biometric systems and methods which employ iris recognition, inter alia. Biometric acquisition systems generally employ cameras, lens, illumination, processors, and reporting functions. When such systems detect the identity of a subject, they can issue a signal, open a gate, sound an alarm, alert operators, or merely record the detection. Some biometric acquisition systems require a card swipe or other means of informing the system of the purported identity of a subject.
Previous systems were primarily kiosk-based, where the cameras and illumination were directly in front of the user, looking directly towards them.
More recently, “walk through” biometric identification systems have been disclosed. Walk through systems are designed to verify the identity of subjects who pass through an opening such as an airport gate, a door, or the like, by illuminating the subject as it passes through the gate, acquiring an image of one or two irises and/or facial features of the subject, applying an algorithm to an image to generate a set of data, and comparing the resultant set or sets of data to stored sets of data using pre-designated criteria and determining if there is a match between the sets of data and thereby determining if there is a match between the subject's iris and/or facial features and registered identities. In the prior art systems, the cameras were mounted in a device situated directly facing the user, such that the user had to walk around the cameras.
There are problems with existing systems which have prevented them from being widely adopted. The great disadvantage of the arrangement of illuminators and cameras is that the person has to stop or change their direction of motion, or else they will strike the cameras and illuminators. This approach has been the state-of-the-art in iris recognition for decades. Also, when the illumination in prior systems is continually turned on at normal levels, the illuminator must be replaced at frequent intervals. Also, the systems may be fooled into illuminating when non-subjects walk past them rather than subjects walking through them.
Some systems use multiple sensors to acquire data through spectral filters at the same time, which is inefficient.
Further, some systems are not capable of integrating non-biometric devices such as classic identification card systems which can be swiped or touched to a detector.
There has been a long-felt need in the field of biometric detection systems and methods for more efficient and effective detection, identification, and security.